Kung Fu is just one of many Martial Artforms which have made cultural inroads in many countries in the East. Shaolin Temples over the period of last decade or so, have come up along, mainly in China, and sometimes in its affiliate countries as well. However, Shaolin Temple Secular Discipline Union in China is considered the prime training centre for any of the thousands martial arts disciples to flock the cloud-capped facility. Kanishka Sharma, who has now started his own Shaolin Gurukul in India, is the first from the country to have trained in the Temple. This is his story.

Kanishka Sharma’s calling into Martial arts began at a very early age of six. He credits the influence to the cult Hollywood hit ‘The 36th Chamber Of Shaolin’. From there, Kanishka moved onto taking training with utmost reverence and ended up enrolling himself at the Temple as he hit adulthood. Starting with Karate, Kanishka went on to learn Kung Fu and Kerala’s Kalaripayattu, followed by the Northern Pai Shaolin style, and the Southern Shaolin style called the 18 Hands of Lohan. He is the first Indian to ever train at the Shaolin Temple and is now a certified Master himself. Granted the title of Shifu (Master), he has been blessed with the Buddhist name ‘Shi Yan You’, which means ‘perfect’, in recognition of his skills.

Now, establishing his own Gurukul in Nainital, Kanishka wishes to impart his knowledge of the artform to enthusiasts who come with a willing heart and an open mind. With a Gurukul system established, Kanishka ensures that his students, experience training in a clutter free, strings-free setup, starting with a long hike up to the school, and rigorous training imparted. Shifu Kanishka wants his students to learn martial arts the right way, not the sports version of it that so many teach. His students come to him as much to learn combat as to learn the Shaolin way of life.